Covid-19 grants for small businesses now being distributed

Covid-19 grants for small businesses now being distributed

PEMBROKESHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL’S Cabinet Member for Economy, Tourism, Leisure and Culture, Paul Miller, has announced that payments to businesses started today (April 1).
Said Councillor Miller: “The team have been working flat out to get this scheme up and running as we know just how important this support is to business right now.
“Government promised the money would be with us by the 1st April and, now that the first tranche of cash has arrived, we have started distributing that support to our businesses.
“We undertook a short test run yesterday to make sure the system was running correctly and from today we are running daily payment runs so that as many can be processed in the shortest possible time.”

The following grants are available to small businesses to support the costs associated with the impact of Covid-19 on their businesses as follows;
• small business grant funding of £10,000 for all business in receipt of small business rate relief or rural rate relief;
• grant funding of £25,000 for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses with property with a rateable value between £15,000 and £51,000.
Councillor Miller added “I know our local businesses are doing all they can to sustain jobs and livelihoods. Our job is to get assistance to them as quickly and efficiently as possible.”

Police urge visitors to ‘check the rules’

POLICE in Powys are reminding people to check the rules before they travel, as tourists from the Midlands, London and Bristol continue to visit despite lockdown restrictions.

Last weekend more than 1,000 cars were turned around by police in the Brecon Beacons after visitors attempted to access the area around Ystradfellte known as ‘waterfall country’.

Many of those stopped claimed they thought the rules around travel were the same as in England, while others had deliberately flouted them.

Seventy-two per cent of people reported for breaches of Covid-19 restrictions in Powys since March 27 have been from outside the police force area.

“I would like to thank the communities of Powys for their cooperation in recent months in complying with requirements of the Covid 19 legislation and also reassure them we are still working hard with our partners to police the restrictions that remain in place across Wales,” said Superintendent Steve Davies.

“Our officers have worked hard to engage with the public at every opportunity throughout these unprecedented times by explaining what we are doing and why, and encouraging people to make the best choices to protect public health in Wales.

“But where people have clearly flouted the rules we have dealt with them appropriately and issued fines.”

He said officers will continue to conduct stop checks throughout Powys and across the force area this weekend.

In England, people can now travel an unlimited distance for exercise and to access so-called ‘beauty spots’.

But the Welsh Government has said people must remain local – ideally not travelling further than five miles from their home – for exercise or limited leisure pursuits, and this also applies to anyone travelling across the border.

Wales’ three national parks – which include popular sites such as Snowdon, the Elan valley and the Pembrokeshire coast – currently remain closed to the public, as do all National Trust car parks and properties.